


The Elf and the Arling: A First Day Tale

by AthenaTseta



Series: A Story of 1000 Words [6]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Chantry holiday, Established Relationship, F/F, First Day, Fluff and Angst, Holidays, Post-Canon, Satinalia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:14:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28276665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AthenaTseta/pseuds/AthenaTseta
Summary: Set after the events ofAll But Broken: The Awakening, Leliana attempts to drag Renya into First Day celebrations. Like with all things having to do with the Chantry, Renya is less than willing to participate. No spoilers for that story, although one original character from it makes a brief appearance.
Relationships: Leliana/Female Mahariel (Dragon Age), Leliana/Female Warden (Dragon Age), Leliana/Warden (Dragon Age)
Series: A Story of 1000 Words [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1060649
Comments: 13
Kudos: 21





	1. Unavoidable

A quill fiddled between Renya’s fingers. The letter she had received from Nathaniel was troubling; he and a few Ferelden Wardens had made the journey to Kirkwall without incident, and were now laying low, attempting to find out more about a character named Hawke who had gone further into the Kirkwall Deep Roads than thought possible. She sighed. Leliana was planning on going to Kirkwall soon, too. Renya wondered if it would be best to go with her, if only to see the trouble for herself. If it was due to the Architect, she would be more responsible than anyone outside of her immediate friends could possibly know.

“Renya?”

The elf smiled as Leliana stood framed in the doorway.

“Are you coming to supper?”

Renya nodded and pushed away from the desk with a sigh, ignoring the tinny singing in the back of her mind. She hesitated when she saw the look Leliana was giving her.

“What is it, vhenan?”

Leliana took her arm as they walked down the hall, leaning into her a little.

“I was wondering if you had thought about any First Day festivities.”

“First day? First day of what?”

Leliana smiled and gave Renya’s arm a little squeeze. “The year, silly. It’s a celebration. You missed Satinalia, but I imagine the Vigil should at least acknowledge First Day, no?”

Renya exhaled heavily. “This is a Shantri celebration?”

“No, not truly. It is a celebration of the new year. Festivities in the town, feasts, merriment, gift giving…”

“Gift giving? Because it is the new year?”

“You have no such thing among the Dalish?”

“During Harvestmere and Cloudreach, we celebrate the harvest and the rains, but we do not give gifts to each other any more than any other time of year.” Renya led them down the stairs, wincing a little on the lingering sprain of her ankle.

Leliana considered what to say next. “For First Day, it is customary for the arl or bann of an area to organize a celebration in the town, with dancing and music. And the children receive gifts…”

She continued, with Renya only half-listening. She was gritting her teeth by the time they got to the bottom of the stairs. First she had been dragged to a ball in Val Royeaux, then the First Constable of the Orlesian Grey Wardens, Clarel, had visited, causing a stir in the town and a banquet at the Vigil. During the meal, Renya, unsure of what to do with the weak lemon tea handed to her, sipped at it until Leliana caught her, whispered it was something called a fingerbowl, and then proceeded to take a sip herself with a smile and a joke when one of the Orlesian Wardens made a sotto voce comment about Dalish elves being uncultured.

She’d had heard the whispers of something called “Satinalia” before embarking on a trip to Orzammar at the request of King Bhelen, to address some troubling news coming from the Deep Roads there. She had thus happily sidestepped the Shantri nonsense that time.

Now this. And no trouble in the Deep Roads in sight.

“…and sometimes,” Leliana continued, unaware of the grumbling in Renya’s mind, “the arl will host an event for the children, in memory of Brother Nikoli, who would bring gifts to all the children in the land to remind them of the gifts the Maker gave to us.” She smiled slightly when she saw Renya staring straight ahead, looking distinctly unamused. “It would be fun. You have been working so hard and…” Her smile wavered.

“A Shantri brother travels across an entire country to deliver gifts?”

“So the story goes,” Leliana said with a little shrug.

“For children who do not have people to give them gifts?”

“…yes, that is what they say.”

“Hm.”

Leliana sighed. “It would mean a lot to me. And I… I may need to travel again, soon.”

“I will ask Varel to attend to these festivities. I do not know about them.”

“I was hoping you would take an interest, my love,” Leliana said with disappointment.

“We may exchange gifts, if this is something important to you.”

“It’s... It’s not about the gifts, Renya.”

Edwin clomped up to her before they made it to the dining room. He scowled at her.

“Commander,” he said with the smallest salute. “Sister Helen received a message from Revered Mother Leanna.” He grunted. “She would like an official statement from the Vigil as to the festivities for First Day, since the showing at Satinalia was unexpected.” He said _unexpected_ as if it meant _disappointing_. But the slight roll of his eyes showed that he didn’t particularly care for the holy days, either.

Renya glanced at Leliana, who was looking at her pointedly. She sighed. “Vin, yes, we will have a statement for the First Day.”

He smiled wryly at her. “More human nonsense, Commander, right?”

She cracked a smile. Out of all the other human Wardens, he was the only one who seemed as disillusioned by Chantry customs as she. When she saw the disappointed look on Leliana’s face, she nodded halfheartedly.

“Vin, yes. But important, in any case, I am sure.”

“Also,” Edwin said, “We haven’t found Anders yet. Some say he ran to the Free Marches. Should we send word to Nathaniel?”

“No, let him go.” They began walking again. “He is bound to the lands touched by the Blight more than he could ever be tied to any other cause. He has always been running,” she added reflectively. “I hope he finds something that will settle him in Kirkwall.”

Edwin humphed. He had never liked Anders. They turned into the dining room and Edwin excused himself. It was emptier than Renya remembered it. Between Nathaniel going to Kirkwall with a few of the more experienced Wardens and Rhelsia commanding those at Soldier’s Peak, there were few Wardens left who felt comfortable dining with the commander and Leliana.

“I’ve had a letter from Josephine,” Leliana offered when they had taken their seats. “She is quite happy in her current position, but I think she is coming around to our idea…”

Renya nodded, recognizing the “our” to mean Divine Justinia. “That is good,” she offered. “I liked Lady Montilyet very much.” She shot Leliana a teasing look. “And I think the feeling was mutual.”

Leliana tisked and playfully slapped Renya’s forearm. “I think you’re right,” she returned. “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen her with such stars in her eyes. But for that, I can hardly blame her.”

“Indeed. I am quite the catch, I hear.”

Leliana laughed musically. “You are also quite ridiculous sometimes.” She took a sip of wine. “You never told me what Bhelen wanted. You looked quite shaken when you returned.”

Renya shuddered. She knew Leliana was trying to ease her into talking about the First Day, but the memories of the harvester were too horrible to be distracted by a Shantri feast. “It was bad, Lelia. I can only hope the cave-in was enough to stop the monsters they created.” She sighed. “Golems, harvesters… perhaps the dwarves should also stop looking backward when it comes to recapturing their greatness.”

“I see.”

“I am also going to tell Varel to put the Vigil’s resources at your disposal for First Day celebrations, whatever they are.”

Leliana startled. “Oh! I…”

“You would know better than me what the Shantri people want from these celebrations. And what the humans in the city will want, too,” she continued, not looking at Leliana. “I leave it to you.”

“I was hoping you would take an interest.”

“I am not interested in Shantri holy days, Lelia.”

“Is this because I became a Seeker?”

“It is because the Shantri has taken much from me. The homeland of my people, clan members, and even the Blights themselves were caused by humans breaking into the home of your Maker. And then they take you from me, too.” She poked at her food, frowning.

Leliana huffed. “We talked about that.”

“We did,” Renya agreed, now scowling at her, instead. “You asked me my opinion, I said I did not want you to go. You said you had no choice.” She shrugged, as if her point were proven. When Leliana didn’t reply, she turned back to her food, adding, “You will need to excuse me if I do not feel particularly enthusiastic about the holy days of your Shantri.”

After a moment, Leliana sighed, shoulders drooping. Renya had a point, after all. Leliana had been horrified at some of the stories Renya had told of her clan’s interactions with the templar, and it was reasonable that to Renya, Leliana’s becoming a Seeker was just another example of the Chantry taking something important from her.

“You’re right,” she said heavily. “I will speak to Varel.”

“Ma serannas.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***  
> Did you know I'm also writing an original fantasy novel? I'd love if you said hello over on Twitter here, where I chat about writing and occasionally fangirl about my favorite stories, too.


	2. Approval

Although she had resigned herself to planning for First Day without Renya, Leliana was not prepared for the distinct lack of interest in – and indeed, an apparently pointed avoidance of – anything having to do with the celebrations. As the arl, Renya had to approve all aspects of the festivities, but did so mechanically, listening to Varel explain what was to be done, nodding once, and then quickly adding her seal or a meticulously-practiced signature to whatever paper he offered to her without further question or input.

It was also unfortunate that a small clan of Dalish elves arrived in Amaranthine around this time. They said they were only pausing for rest on their way to the Hinterlands, but their presence made the humans uneasy, and so Renya had decided to personally handle the negotiations between the clan and the mayor of the nearby village. Leliana had seen the journey for what it was and refused to see her off.

“It is one thing to not want to engage in a religion not your own,” she had said to Sister Helen, when the Vigil’s lay sister had inquired about the status of the First Day preparations, “and quite another to run off like this!” She took a deep breath, upset with herself for sharing this with a lay sister she hardly knew. But Sister Helen nodded sympathetically.

“We all owe much to the arl,” the sister replied diplomatically, “and we are all happy to engage with her eccentricities, but you are in a frustrating situation.”

Leliana nodded, managing to not roll her eyes. It was clear the lay sister, regardless of her feelings, was not going to speak against her arl, but Leliana wished she had had something of more substance to say.

When Renya arrived home later that week, she had disappeared into one of the rooms reserved for Grey Wardens and shut the door tightly behind her. With frustration, Leliana had continued her preparations, although her conversations with Varel hadn’t helped her mood. She had thought to ask Renya to dress as Brother Nikoli, as the elf was well known for being good with children, but now she realized perhaps another solution needed to be found. But Varel had, to her surprise, shaken his head.

“I’m sorry, my lady,” he said with a helpless look. “The commander has specifically requested that we do not find anyone to portray Brother Nikoli.”

“Why?” Leliana demanded with a little flare of her temper.

Varel shrugged, raising his hands in front of him. “She said you were to be given free reign over any plans, except for this detail. She didn’t give a reason, and it wasn’t my place to ask her.”

“But she approved having the children’s festival at the Vigil!”

“She did.”

“Does she even listen when she is asked to sign the plans?”

“I… imagine she does, my lady. You would know better than I, but she seems to know everything that goes on in her keep.”

Leliana clenched her jaw tightly. That much was true; Renya joked it was from her years as a hunter and needing to be aware of all that surrounded her in the forest. But that didn’t change anything now.

“Fine,” she exhaled. “I will think of something else to do.”

The next day, Leliana heard the bell tower toll three times to announce that the arl had concluded her day at court, but she stayed in the study, finishing writing the official First Day missive that would be read to the town. When Renya didn’t appear within the hour, Leliana took the finished letter and went to find her. She ran into Nilo, another new Grey Warden, instead.

“She’s in the command room,” he said apologetically. “I’m sorry, Lady Leliana.”

“No, no, thank you,” she replied heavily before continuing on. The command room was designated for Grey Warden use only, particularly for discussing any business pertaining to the Order. Non-Wardens were not permitted to use it, and were forbidden from entering if the door was closed.

When she got there, the door was closed. With a calming breath, she knocked.

The door cracked open a little, revealing half of Renya’s face.

“Yes?”

Leliana gave the paper in her hand a little wave. “It needs your seal.”

“Just a moment.”

The door closed and Leliana took another breath, slower and deeper this time. It sounded like things were being moved behind the door, but before Leliana could even begin to guess what was going on, the door opened again.

“Come in.”

“Come in?”

Renya smiled slightly. “I do not think I will get in trouble for inviting you in for a few minutes.” The smile faded. “You are mad at me for something?”

“No, just very busy with preparations.” Leliana strode past Renya, eyes sweeping around the room. It was empty, other than the usual furniture and the maps of Ferelden and the known Deep Roads on the walls. Whatever Renya had been working on, it had been put away.

She sat on one of the couches, wondering if her anger was misplaced. Perhaps Renya really was simply busy. The elf was relentlessly honest, and so it was reasonable that she had, straightforwardly, accepted First Day as something Leliana was handling, and had moved on.

“Hm.” Renya sat next to her and held out her hand for the letter. She read it slowly, tracing her finger below the words. “You make it sound so nice.”

“It _is_ so nice.” Leliana looked down at her lap. “I wish you would be a part of it.”

“Hm.” Darker this time. “I will be here.” She waved her hand to indicate the keep. She rose and melted some wax onto the bottom of the paper before pressing a seal into it and handing it back to Leliana. “I am sorry, Lelia. I have many things I need to do tonight.”

“Yes, of course,” Leliana said with concealed disappointment, recognizing the dismissal. It wasn’t until she was back in the study that her anger came back. She had forgotten to ask Renya about her reluctance to have a Brother Nikoli at the children’s festival. With an annoyed hum, she made one final note before heading to bed alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh...
> 
> ***  
> Did you know I'm also writing an original fantasy novel? I'd love if you said hello over on Twitter [here](https://twitter.com/AlixIsAllWrite), where I chat about writing and occasionally fangirl about my favorite stories, too.


	3. Unexpected Gift

The festivities of First Day came, and Leliana had been pleasantly surprised when Renya had agreed to make the journey to the city of Amaranthine, and even more surprised when Renya had asked to read the missive herself. She glanced around at the crowd, but none seemed bothered by the slow way the elf read. She had then disappeared, and the bits of conversation Leliana heard seemed to place her in the alienage, playing with the elven children who had been too afraid to venture too far from their homes with all the drunk humans about.

Then the festivities started in earnest and Leliana lost track of Renya altogether. The arl traditionally had a room reserved for them beside the Chantry, but Renya wasn’t to be found there at the end of the evening, either. Checking the taverns proved fruitless, and none of the elves claimed to know where the arl had gone. The guard captain said he thought he had seen Renya leaving the city, and so Leliana could only imagine that the elf had begun the journey back to the Vigil. Sergeant Maverlies assured her that Garavel had accompanied her, so she would be safe.

But, in the privacy of her own heart, Leliana felt another bubble of anger that Renya would not even stay in her city for more of the First Day celebrations, opting to begin the two or three day journey back almost immediately upon arriving.

When the rest of the delegation from Vigil’s Keep had arrived home a few days later, Leliana found the main hall decorated to her specifications. Children were already filling the hall with their laughter and games, some playing under the great canopies of red and orange set up around the sides of the room while others ran around the adults, playing tag.

“My lady!” one of the women attending said, dipping into a curtsey. “Thank you for arranging this! We haven’t had such a wonderful First Day in years!” She glanced around. “But where is Arl Renya?”

Leliana hoped her smile didn’t look as frozen as it felt. The arl’s chair, Leliana noticed, was empty.

“She has unfortunately been engaged with a very sensitive matter.”

The woman frowned in confusion, but nodded. “Well, compliments to her, as well, when she arrives.” With another small curtsey, eyes already somewhere else, the woman hurried off after her son, who was tugging on one of the canopies.

With a resigned sigh, Leliana took her seat in the arlessa’s chair. A few minutes later, the storytelling troupe she had requested entered and performed the revelation of the Maker to Andraste for the children, who watched with wide, sparkling eyes. After they had finished, to great applause, snacks were served. It was then that things began to unravel.

“Excuse me, my lady,” Varel murmured close to her ear. “There was… an incident with the gifts…”

“Oh?” She kept her expression pleasant, still watching the children and adults in the hall.

“Yes, I’m afraid… they… we don’t have any.”

Leliana felt her hands ball into fists. It was one thing to block a Brother Nikoli, and quite another to withhold presents from children who looked forward to them all year.  
At that moment, the doors to the great hall opened with a bang. A man dressed in worn Chantry brother robes and an old traveling cloak entered, grey beard obscuring half his face and a cap pulled low over his eyes. In one hand was an oak walking stick, and the other held a cloth pack slung over his shoulder.

“Brother Nikoli!!” yelled a little girl. Soon, the hall was filled with high voices chirping “Brother Nikoli! Brother Nikoli!” as the children mobbed the man who had just entered. Leliana turned to where Varel had been, but he had vanished. She frowned. Maybe this Brother Nikoli came with the storytelling troupe. But in any case, a chair was produced by one of the parents and Nikoli sat, taking each child onto his knee and listening to their new year wishes before reaching into his pack and pulling out a delicately carved wooden toy, to the delight of each child.

Leliana tried to get closer to the actor without causing alarm. While the man patiently was talking to each child, and the toys in his pack seemed unending, Leliana wasn’t sure she wanted someone she did not know here in her home, with the arling’s children.

“Brother Nikoli,” she said when she had finally gotten close enough. The man looked up at her from under his cap, eyes twinkling under floppy grey hair. “We weren’t expecting you. Did the arl invite you?”

Nikoli coughed. “The arl has not been present for First Day,” he mumbled with an accent Leliana didn’t recognize. He sounded like he was getting over an illness. “I am here to make it up.” He pulled a little carved horse out of his pack and handed it to the girl on his lap before sending her on her way. It seemed like all the children had presents, and were back to playing. Nikoli heaved himself to his feet and indicated they should walk. Leliana, not knowing what else to do, followed.

“And what is it that the arlessa wants?”

“What?”

Nikoli just looked at her. Leliana shook her head, thinking of her anger at Renya’s disinterest, and her guilt at her anger. She thought of becoming a Seeker, and Renya asking her to run away with her, away from Amaranthine and the Chantry. Maker, she wasn’t sure what she wanted anymore. Nikoli nodded.

“An apology.” It wasn’t a question.

Leliana’s heart jumped. “Excuse me?”

“An apology.” With that, Nikoli removed his cap, which had grey hair sewn into it. It revealed a face with forehead tattoos that disappeared behind makeup on the nose. Two familiar green eyes twinkled at her as Renya pulled the beard off and smiled.

“I am sorry, Lelia,” Renya said softly. “I should know how much these celebrations mean to you.” She indicated the children playing. “I did not want to spoil the surprise, but there are more children than I expected who were planning on attending.”

Leliana looked at the hand-carved toys in the children’s hands. “What made you change your mind?”

Renya sighed. “A little girl I met when I went to smooth things over with the Dalish… She asked if I would be Brother Nikoli. I asked her why, since I am Dalish, and she said that Brother Nikoli loves everyone, even if you are Dalish.” She swallowed hard. “I need to remember that the Shantri is different than the people who believe in it.”

Leliana swallowed a lump of her own. “And I need to remember to not always expect you to concern yourself with Chantry business for my sake.” Her heart felt a little squeeze when she thought of the codex Justinia had shown to her in secret, dreading what it would mean if she were to use it. She took Renya’s hand and the elf squeezed it.

“I know what I would like for First Day,” Leliana said with a little smile.

“Oh? I will give you anything you ask, Lelia.”

Leliana picked up their hands and her eyes fell on the gold ring Renya had given her after noticing that humans who were married wore rings on their fourth fingers.

_“I do not want you to feel like you are missing anything, because you are with a Dalish elf.”_

_“I don’t, my love.”_

_“And I want to give you the things you want, Lelia.”_

Leliana leaned in and kissed her softly. “You already have, my love.”

They took their seats in the grand chairs at the front of the hall, hands still entwined, each pursuing her own thoughts in the comfortable silence that had fallen between them.

***

It was only later, when she was nestled next to Renya in their four-poster bed, that Leliana remember something else.

“It will be evune’nira next week, my love,” she whispered into the darkness, not sure if Renya was asleep or not. Two glints blinked into existence. Leliana smiled. “I was thinking we could plan a proper celebration.”

A short silence was her answer. Then she was pulled into a warm embrace as Renya pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.

“Ma vhenan’ara,” Renya breathed, kissing her again. “I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> D'aw... Happy new year, everyone!

**Author's Note:**

> Renya and Leliana are back! A little Merry Christmas gift to all the wonderful people who follow Renya's story and have been so patient as 2020 fell apart and I stopped editing my Awakening fanfiction. I haven't forgotten about it, it's still in the works, but in the interim, Renya and Leliana decided to bring a little holiday cheer (maybe?) to their fans! :D
> 
> ***  
> Do you like what you've read? Did you know I'm also writing an original fantasy novel? I'd love if you said hello over on Twitter [here](https://twitter.com/AlixIsAllWrite), where I chat about writing and occasionally fangirl about my favorite stories, too.


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